WOMEN'S HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
After a 4-1 win over Dartmouth Tuesday night the 13th ranked Vermont women's hockey team travels to face the seventh ranked Northeastern Huskies in a battle of the top-two teams in Hockey East. Friday night the teams will faceoff at 6:30 p.m. in the Hockey East Game of the Week on NESN. Saturday afternoon they'll do it all again at 4 p.m. on NESN+. Both games will also be available on ESPN+ as a part of the league's streaming coverage.
 
RELATED LINKS
Live Stats
Live Video: ESPN+ | International Streaming ($)
 
MLYNKOVA ON SCORCHING SCORING STREAK
Junior forward Natálie Mlýnková has been on a tear over the last few weeks, in Vermont's last seven games she has 14 points including eight goals and six assists. For the first time in her career she is leading the Catamounts in scoring with 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points. With 25 points, she is tied for second in Hockey East in scoring and tied for fifth in the NCAA.
 
McPHERSON BACKSTOPPING THE CATS
Junior goaltender Jessie McPherson is tied for fourth in the NCAA with 10 wins this season. She has maintained a 1.97 goals-against average which is 19th in the NCAA. McPherson has 29 wins in her career at Vermont, she is approaching Madison Litchfield's (2013-17) program record of 32.
 
LONG CHANGE, LONG PERIOD
The Catamounts have been most effective this season during the second period, when both teams have the long change. UVM has outscored its opponents 24-8 in the second and outshot teams 191-108.
 
OFFENSE AND DEFENSE AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS
With 3.5 goals-per game the Catamounts offense ranks eighth in the NCAA. Vermont has scored five or more goals six times in 17 games this season. Vermont is giving up just 1.8 goals per game which is tied for eighth best in the NCAA.
 
STARTING FAST THIS SEASON
With the Catamounts 3-0 win over Merrimack on November 18 the Catamounts picked up their 10th win of the season. Vermont reached the 10-win mark in just 16 games setting a new program record. To put that achievement in perspective, in 12 of the Catamounts 21 Division I seasons UVM failed to win 10 or more games during the entire campaign. The four most successful seasons in UVM history in terms of wins have all come under Head Coach Jim Plumer.
 
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
Northeastern enters this weekend matchup after an impressive set of wins at the Smashville Showcase in Nashville. The Huskies bested No. 14 Princeton 4-1 and No. 9 Cornell 5-1. In their last 11 games, Northeastern is 9-1-1 with the only blemishes coming against then No. 13 Providence. The Huskies are 7-0-1 this season at Matthews Arena.
 
Northeastern is the highest scoring team in the country with 76 goals this season, an average of four per games. Graduate forward Alina Mueller leads the Huskies and Hockey East in scoring with 26 points this season. She has 14 goals and 12 assists on the campaign. In 14 career games against Vermont she has seven goals and 11 assists for 18 points.

SERIES HISTORY
Friday will mark the 58th all-time meeting between the Catamounts and Huskies. Vermont is 8-44-4 all-time against Northeastern. This will be the first meeting between the two teams since the Catamounts ended Huskies 13-game winning streak on January 28, 2022 with a 2-1 win at Matthews Arena. It was also the Catamounts first-ever win over a top-ranked team. The Huskies have lost only twice in their last 42 home games, once to Vermont and once to Boston College.
 
FAMILIAR FACE ON THE BLUELINE
Graduate transfer Maude Poulin-Labelle will play her first career games against the Catamounts this weekend. Over the last four seasons she played 116 games in the green and gold with 30 goals and 53 assists. Poulin-Labelle was named Second Team All-America following the Catamounts record-breaking 2021-22 campaign. She became the first Catamount to be named Hockey East's Best Defenseman. She ranked third amongst all NCAA defenseman with 35 points (13G, 22 A) in 34 games. She also set a Vermont program record with six points in a single game at Holy Cross on January 18.
 
HOCKEY ALUMNAE – SAVE THE DATE!
Vermont Hockey is excited to invite our former Catamounts back January 20-21, 2023 for Alumnae Weekend.  The weekend will include Pack the Gut and celebrating 25 varsity seasons!  Alumnae who interested in helping plan the weekend's events, can contact our Victory Club Office at Victory.Club@uvm.edu.  Hotel Block:  go.uvm.edu/wihhotel (held through December 19)
 
CZECH-MATES EARN BRONZE
Vermont forwards Tynka Pátková & Natálie Mlýnková earned bronze medals at the 2022 IIHF Women's World Championships in Denmark in September. Czechia defeated Switzerland 4-2 in the bronze medal game behind two goals from Mlýnková. It was Czechia's first-ever medal on the women's side. Former Catamount Blanka Skodova was also a member of the team.
 
There were three other current Catamounts in the tournament patrolling the blueline. First year Krista Parkkonen (Finland) made her World Championships debut while Sofie Skott (Denmark) and Sini Karjalainen (Finland) competed in their second World Championship at the senior level.
 
The Windjammer Inn and Conference Center is the presenting sponsor of the UVM women's hockey program